posted on Jan, 11 2012 @ 02:59 PM
Part of it depends on the objectives and who or what is being targeted.
For war, there is usually a formal declaration, and the targets are the enemy combatants and there supporting structures like factories that make the
war supplies and the command structure and such of the enemy warfighting complex. It is essentially for the purpose of making the other side do what
you want when diplomatic means have failed.
For terrorism, the targets are usually non-combatants. The purpose is usually aimed at overthrowing the political/social structure of the target
society. This is usually done by means of causing damage and casualties to the extent that the peoples of the society become so overburdened with the
structures put in place by the societal government in an effort to protect them that the people enact a change in the government.
In a war, the populations of the opposing sides tend to be supportive of their leadership's efforts to defeat the opposing force.
With terrorism, the terrorists are usually extremist in their views compared to the population they are in and tend not to have the support of the
majority of the society in which they exist.
edit on 11-1-2012 by davidchin because: add stuff